Project 2: Vacant Land in Singapore

 

The value of vacant land in dense cities like Singapore is potentially high because such land serves multiple purposes and potentialities. Other than market value for development, anecdotal evidence suggests that vacant lots in Singapore are used for recreation, community events, safe gathering spots in case of fire, and simply as critical breathing rooms in a high-rise and high-density city. Research on ecosystem services also indicates that vacant land can provide multiple benefits such as air purification, runoff reduction, heat mitigation, or carbon sequestration.

 

Global evidence illustrates the importance of comprehensive and systematic assessment of the valuation of land vacancy alongside its market value. At present, vacant land in Singapore appears to be valued mainly on its potential exchange value, rather than its full value that would include actual and potential use value. 

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In this project, we seek to develop a robust methodology to assess the full value of vacancy that integrates economic value with other types of values including social and ecological values. Preliminary work involved i) creating an inventory of urban vacant land in Singapore to understand the locations and the kinds of vacancy; and ii) conducting empirical fieldwork to document and understand the uses and users, as well as ecosystems in selected case studies. Future work will involve refining the methodology for assessing social and ecological values. 

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Project leads: Felicity Chan (SSS) and Perrine Hamel (ASE)